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The Father of Kathleen Belcher
Real Name: Chetley Norris Case: '''Lost Father '''Location: '''Covington, Kentucky '''Date: February 1950 Case Details: In May 1988, in Plant City, Florida, a hospital nurse named Kathleen Belcher received a call from her mother Miriam Terry. Kathleen's stepfather was about to have major surgery and he needed blood from Kathleen and her sister. Kathleen's blood type was A and her mother's was B; she asked Miriam about her father's blood type and she said it was O. Kathleen was confused because she knew that to have type A blood, one of her parents had to have it as well. At this point, Miriam realized that her secret was out; she had inadvertently revealed that the man Kathleen believed to be her father was, in fact, not her father at all. Miriam's first husband, Bud Terry, was the man that Kathleen assumed was her father. Bud had flown bombing missions during WWII; after the war, Miriam noted that he was a changed man. Bud became involved in gambling and was almost always in debt as a result. In 1945, Miriam and Bud had a daughter, Kathleen's sister. In 1948, Bud re-enlisted, hoping that military discipline would restore some order to his life. It did not work; Bud went AWOL, leaving Miriam and her daughter behind. Several months later, Bud's parents convinced Miriam to move on; they even introduced her to a new man: Chet Norris, a bartender in Covington, Kentucky. Chet was nice to Miriam, and she soon became attracted to him. The two began dating and Miriam tried to get a divorce from Bud. Miriam and Chet planned a new life for each other. Then, Bud was arrested by military authorities; he was found living with another woman. Miriam did not want to return to Bud; she soon discovered that she was pregnant with Chet's child. Chet wanted to marry Miriam, but she had to divorce Bud first. Miriam visited Bud in jail; she was determined to end their marriage. Bud refused and planned to take their daughter with him if they divorced. Bud agreed to raise the child as his own, so Miriam agreed to go back to him. She then told Chet that she had lied about being pregnant. Chet, however, still wanted to marry Miriam. She again refused and told him that she was staying with her husband. Chet left, and Miriam never saw him again. Bud was eventually released; Kathleen was born on February 12, 1950. Bud raised Kathleen as his own child. Bud's addiction to gambling kept the family close to bankruptcy. Miriam and Bud divorced in 1969; Miriam re-married in 1974. Bud committed suicide a few months later. Miriam believed that her secret would remain hidden from her daughter. She, in fact, planned to take the secret to her grave. However, Miriam says that since it is her fault, she is now helping her daughter find her birth father. Kathleen has spent six years searching for her father using Social Security recods, classified ads, and computer hotlines. Kathleen has phone hundreds of Norrises across the country. However, she has yet to find him. Chetley Norris was a golden gloves boxer during the 1940s. He may have had a brother named John. If still alive, Chet would now be in his late 80s or early 90s. Extra Notes: This case was featured as a part of the May 4, 1994 episode. Results: Unsolved Links: None ---- Category:Kentucky Category:1949 Category:1950 Category:Lost Loves Category:Unsolved Category:Military-Related Cases